


5 (+1) Ways The Ghouls Celebrated Christmas

by stellaedeinferno



Category: Ghost (Sweden Band)
Genre: Christmas Party, Fluff, Gen, Hijinks & Shenanigans, Light Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 07:40:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21959773
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stellaedeinferno/pseuds/stellaedeinferno
Summary: Prompted by the Ghost BC Secret Santa 2019 exchange, "a story about the current ghouls' spending Xmas on the Church grounds. No pairings, just friendly fun and antics."Five ways the Ghouls prepared for a little Christmas celebration of their own, and one way they celebrated.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 22
Collections: Ghost BC Secret Santa 2019





	5 (+1) Ways The Ghouls Celebrated Christmas

**Author's Note:**

  * For [of-devils-and-drawings](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=of-devils-and-drawings).



> This fic is a Secret Santa gift for [of-devils-and-drawings](https://of-devils-and-drawings.tumblr.com/) over on Tumblr within the [Ghost BC Secret Santa 2019](https://ghostbcfandomevents.tumblr.com/) exchange.
> 
> You asked Santa, and this elf delivered. I hope you enjoy, and have a happy holiday season!
> 
> And, as always, thank you to the event organizers.

**1\. Planning.**

The advertisement for Christmas products ran on the screen, the Ghouls using this commercial break to stretch their limbs. The seven of them had wanted to spend the evening off together, having found a movie they had all wanted to see. 

The set up hadn’t been that uncomfortable, with the lot of them taking up various seats across the sofa, armchairs, and even the floor. Cirrus shook her head and helped Rain dust off the popcorn that had landed on him, the latter Ghoul flipping off Aether and Dewdrop for having their food fight in spite of, or perhaps _because of_ their seats being across from each other, collateral be damned.

In the middle of Ghouls calling dibs on the bathroom and asking to order more snacks, Mountain idly watched the advert playing. It had been some time since he had last been around fir trees, and the market that sold them for Christmas was close by.

He gently poked Cumulus with his tail, getting her attention.

“Do you think we could get one?,” Mountain asked, gesturing to the screen.

“What, a tree?,” she frowned, looking around. “We might have the space for it.”

Rain looked up, sitting by their legs. “We didn't really celebrate it last year, did we?"

Dewdrop laughed. "I don't think getting plastered on Christmas counts."

"We could celebrate this year!," said Swiss. "Since we're getting a tree, we might as well do the whole shebang; decorating, cooking, giving gifts…"

"Just us mates?," asked Aether, poking his head in from the kitchen. "We could. Might as well see what it's all about."

"It does seem fun," agreed Cirrus. 

Aether reached over and grabbed the magnetic notepad on their fridge, along with a novelty banana shaped pen he had been jokingly given. The Ghoul ripped off the top note and crumpled it up, tossing it at Dewdrop who ducked and flipped him off. "Let's make a shopping list of things we need."

Over the course of the rest of the advertisement breaks, the lot of them had come up with enough items for different activities, some which ended up not making the cut ("We are not getting a fake snow machine." "Why not?" "Will _you_ clean up afterwards?" "...That's fair.") and some of which they had all agreed to right away (matching ugly Christmas sweaters had gotten them cracking up with laughter for the rest of that break and well into the movie.)

The decision was made to go get the purchases done the next day, with the group splitting up to cover more ground in the inevitable, interminable queues they would face. 

As the credits rolled and those who were still awake founds blankets to throw onto those who had fallen asleep, one Ghoul considered what disaster he might have brought on with his wish for a simple tree. Mountain shrugged. _He_ wasn't going to clean any of it up. 

And, if the quiet amusement of the Ghoulettes was anything to go by, it would at least be entertaining to see it all go down. 

* * *

**2\. Shopping.**

The Ghouls took out the notepad and split up the list once they got to the shopping mall the next morning. The late night and early wakeup left most of them bleary eyed and in search of caffeine, and the yawning of one of them left them laughing as it spread among them contagiously. 

As the plans and tasks had already been somewhat divided among themselves (with, for instance, Mountain being tasked with decorating as he was the only one who could reach things easily, and the Ghouls who usually cooked being familiar with the recipes and the changes they might make) it had been easier than anticipated to map out their trip. A smooth proceeding. 

The hours that followed were a different story. 

The sweaters Rain had been able to find in all of the sizes they needed had been a glittery yellow, the only ones still _filling_ the shelves unlike the sweaters with more popular Christmas designs. 

They were _perfect_ . Rain didn't bother letting them know by text that that was all he could find; he planned on cherishing their expressions later when they discovered the sweaters for themselves - a strategy that allowed him to get the loudest " _what the fuck_ " from his friends to date, to his great pleasure. 

The retrieval of the tree and the accompanying decorations fell to Mountain, Cumulus, and Cirrus, with the former picking out the largest real tree he could find that would actually fit into their place. Between the three of them, they managed to find a good set of tinsel and of hanging ornaments, that went from gaudy baubles with glitter in the wildest of colours to pieces of the funny and obscene variety.

They made sure to also grab the set that featured eggplants, peaches, and bananas. 

The search for ingredients went as well as it could be expected when left to Aether, Dewdrop, and Swiss. Which is to say, they got everything that they needed and were efficient about them, but couldn't resist stopping by the toys aisle and having a small fight with the Nerf guns left there for demonstration and testing purposes by the store, or grabbing a couple of packs of jelly beans of every flavour, including grass and skunk, to terrorise the other Ghouls with at the earliest convenience. 

In the midst of it all, they had also taken the time to find gifts for each other. These were saved for last and were purchased individually, turning into a twisted version of hide and seek to keep each other from spotting their presents. 

It also ended with Cumulus having to pinch Swiss' arm every time he tried to reach for the shopping bags behind the seats under the pretense of stretching, and with Dewdrop holding Aether's gift bag hostage in exchange for the last leftover pizza slice. 

* * *

**3\. Decorating.**

The Christmas lights had gotten tangled _again_ with the tinsel and with themselves while being wrapped around their bannister, and Cumulus swore loudly as she had to undo them for what felt like the fifth time since she had started putting them up an hour before. 

Mountain had managed to get their tree to stand up, similarly frustrated after a couple of hours of it toppling over at random, the stand holding it in place not doing its job as it was supposed to. This not only resulted in him being covered in fir needles to his friends' amusement and teasing about his name, but also almost got Cirrus squashed underneath it as she tried putting an ornament in place. 

They replaced the stand after that.

It didn't take long for them to realise they had forgotten to purchase a tree topper, and it took even less than that to decide to put up the goat plushie they had taken on tour, held in place by plenty of tape. 

The rest of the Christmas lights were then set up around the house, with Mountain wrapping Rain up in some after one too many comments of "put that higher and to the left."

Mountain enjoyed the blissful silence that followed. 

The smaller decorations they had gotten, like stockings for each of them to hang up, were the next to be set. Snowglobes found a home on their coffee table, green wreaths rested on doors, and cosy blankets were added to their armchairs.

Mistletoe was placed about in the oddest of places, from the doorway of the kitchen to the corner of their living room, and, to their laughter, even the ceiling above the shower. 

Though the items themselves or the theme weren't that important to the Ghouls, the clutter did feel like it lended a homier feel to their quarters, and they resolved to find more pieces to add to their space even after the holiday would be over. 

The gifts they would sometimes get from fans were already present here and there, in the form of mementos displayed where the space allowed for it, but the Ghouls thought it would be different to add things they would pick out themselves for their shared space.

And, the Ghoulettes had to admit, it had been funny to hear Aether's startled shriek when he opened the cupboard and instead of his usual mug he had found a little troll figure in Christmas colours, its beady eyes reflecting the dim red lights of their decorations. 

* * *

**4\. Wrapping.**

Though the Ghouls had made sure to box up their gifts in order to leave them anonymous, they had come to the conclusion that wrapping these boxes together was another activity essential to the celebrations, and it was not long before their living room floor was covered in glitter, wrapping paper, bows, and the like.

“Aether, help me with this,” Dewdrop said as he threw a piece of ribbon at the other Ghoul.

“...Sure.” Aether sat down next to him. “What do you need me to do?”

“Hold a finger there,” Dewdrop said as he pointed to the spot. The Fire Ghoul began tying the ribbon in an intricate bow, making sure to leave no room for Aether’s finger to escape. “Done. Thank you.” 

“Dewdrop- I don’t think-,” Aether interjected, tugging at his finger.

“Make sure not to take it apart, yeah?,” Dewdrop said, patting his head as be turned to wrap another gift.

The other Ghouls left Aether to struggle with the bow for the following few minutes, busy with their own wrapping paper rolls and the tape dispensers that didn’t seem to help with the cutting process. Rain eventually helped him out of the bow without ruining it, under Dewdrop’s watchful gaze, and in exchange roped Aether into helping him with his own gifts.

Judging by the amount of glitter that covered the Water Ghoul, it was likely he would have received help either way, if only so the rest of them did not end up the same way.

Paying attention to their own boxes, it took the Ghouls a while to realise what Swiss was up to; the Multi Ghoul had begun wrapping himself in the colourful Christmas paper, turning himself into an odd sort of mummy - or worm, as Cirrus helpfully supplied.

“What are you doing?,” Dewdrop asked, shaking his head at him.

“I’m wrapping my gift to you all, obviously,” Swiss replied cheerfully, finishing another roll of paper and tossing the remaining cardboard over his shoulder. “I’m the only thing you need to find under the tree.”

“Does that mean we can leave you there until we open the gifts?,” Mountain asked, taking a sip of his hot chocolate.

“You would do that?,” Swiss retorted, a hand comically placed over his chest as if he were clutching his pearls in shock. “See if I give you your gift now.”

Rain stooped down and picked up the discarded cardboard rolls, gently bonking Swiss on the head with them. “You can’t give them unwrapped, and you’re using up all of your paper.”

“That’s because-,” Swiss paused, struggling to put his other arm through the paper covering his torso, “-I already finished mine.” The Multi Ghoul gestured to a pile of boxes resting by his legs, all done up and waiting.

“Already?,” Cirrus said, surprised. She looked up from her own gift after her second attempt cutting up the wrapping paper in too small a piece for it to wrap around the box properly. “Help me with this, then.”

“Free me,” Swiss laughed, waving his free hand at her.

Dewdrop walked over, utility knife in hand.

“Wait- no, not like that. Put that down.”

“What’s the matter?,” Dewdrop asked, a smirk on his face. “You know I won’t cut you.”

“I know, but I still don’t trust you with that,” Swiss said, eyeing the knife that loomed ever closer.

“Sit still,” Dewdrop said, before carefully cutting him out of his self-made prison.

“I’m free,” Swiss laughed, tossing the paper away. “Like a butterfly out of its cocoon.”

“Or like a banana out of its peel,” Aether said, amused.

Swiss promptly put a taped bow onto Aether’s mouth.

* * *

**5\. Cooking.**

Armed with his yellow Christmas sweater, soft candy cane socks, and a drink in hand, Aether was the first who braved the kitchen that day. The counters had been cleaned the previous evening in preparation, and the dishes and utensils they would be using had already been washed. The Ghoul looked at the list of recipes they would be going over and began getting the ingredients out of their cupboards and the fridge and measuring them for the recipes they would be starting with, as well as preheating the oven.

It was only an hour later that Dewdrop, Swiss and Cirrus joined him, taking up tasks around the kitchen after seeing where Aether had gotten to with each recipe. They were all decent cooks in their own right, and they tried to avoid stepping on each others’ toes, preferring to do some recipes individually when possible.

Sometimes, it was easier to do them with more hands on deck.

“You’re supposed to separate the yolks first,” said Cirrus, frowning at the mixing bowl before her.

“It’s fine like this,” said Aether, confused. “It never specified it on the recipes I found.”

“She’s right, it helps make the consistency a little fluffier,” said Dewdrop, peeking over his shoulder at the bowl. “You can add more milk instead.”

“Then it’ll be too runny and won’t be cooked properly in the oven,” said Swiss, shaking his tail to the beat of the song playing on the radio.

“That depends on the temperature you’re setting it at, and how long you’re cooking it for,” Dewdrop retorted. “But it’s fine the way it is.”

Other times, it was easier when fewer people were involved.

“Swiss, I _need_ to use the flour,” said Aether, his eyes trained on the packet just out of his reach.

“My hands are a little busy,” said Swiss, still mixing the ingredients in the bowl before him. “Dewdrop, can you get it?”

“Sure,” said the Fire Ghoul, grabbing the packet behind him with his tail and reaching it out to offer it to Aether. “How much do you need?”

“About 500 gra-,” said Aether before Dewdrop’s tail squeezed the flour too hard and caused the package to rip, sending a small cloud of flour into the air and into Aether’s mouth, who began coughing.

“Sorry,” said Dewdrop, already turning to help clean it up.

“Are we starting a food fight?,” laughed Cirrus, the cookie cutter being set down for the moment as she, too, turned to help out.

“Let’s save that for later. Ooh, we could pie Cardi’s face if he does show up!,” grinned Swiss.

Dewdrop turned to him, frowned, thought about it for a moment, and nodded with a shrug. “I’m in.”

* * *

**+1. Celebrating.**

The day had arrived, and had started with the obnoxiously loud sound of a Christmas song playing in the living room. The Ghouls all got out of their beds, grumbles and curses passing through their lips as they all shuffled towards the tree. Their matching sweaters had been put on for the occasion, and they laughed when they saw how they looked sporting the same getup as a group.

As they all tore into the wrapping of their respective gifts, they could understand the appeal of the custom and it made the mess they had created worth it, paper and ribbons flying left and right, tossed at each other or carelessly on the floor as they got to see what they had all received.

It was about then that their Cardinal stopped by and was quickly brought up to speed, being offered his gifts (a gesture which he returned, to the Ghouls’ delight), a seat and a drink. Most of the gifts had been a good balance between funny and thoughtful, and they thanked each other before putting them away and getting the table ready for their meal as the four Ghouls that had cooked brought out the various dishes. 

Any concerns some might have had, teasingly or not, were laid to rest, and the courses swept by over the hours of their celebration. They took this time to laugh about the past year, discussing the various places they had been and what they were looking forward to in the future, uncertain as it was. 

As the dessert was finally brought out, and some group photos were taken, they all looked at each other and raised their champagne flutes in a toast.

“We’re not _really_ celebrating Christmas, but this has been fun,” said Cirrus, sipping her drink.

“It has. We could do it again next year,” said Rain, his tail swaying happily.

“How did you even come up with this?,” asked Copia, raising his eyebrows at them.

“I wanted a tree,” shrugged Mountain, nodding over at the tree in question, standing a ways away from their table.

“Oh, yeah. Why is it all the way over there? You guys have space,” frowned the Cardinal. 

“Don’t ask,” said Cirrus, giving him a flat look.

Cumulus laughed. “We wanted to make sure the table would be safe from its wrath.”

“Hey, we fixed it,” said Dewdrop, walking over and kicking the stand screws in a little more. “See? It’s safe.”

The stand appreciated it less so, and the tree began to slowly tilt…

...only to be caught by the Fire Ghoul.

“Little shit,” he muttered, going about fixing it again.

The only thing that had been disturbed by the action was the goat plushie, which was toppled from its spot atop the tree. Swiss picked it up and set it down on the table between the platters of cookies and cake before helping out the Fire Ghoul.

“Fitting,” said Aether, picking up the plush and setting it on top of his own head, held in place between his horns. “We’ve been carrying this thing around, it makes sense for it to celebrate with us.”

“Does that mean you’re the new tree?,” teased Cumulus.

“Trees need decorations,” grinned Cirrus, catching on.

“Oh no,” said Aether, laughing even as Rain wrapped some spare tinsel around his shoulders. 

Dewdrop looked up from where he had finished putting the tree in its place, seeing the band having fun and spending time together.

It was a good holiday.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you've enjoyed this piece.
> 
> You can also [find me on tumblr.](https://perinferiadastra.tumblr.com/)


End file.
